We want our money back

What would you think of an auto dealer who gave you a $30,000 car because you needed transportation.  Then six months later called you up and asked you to come in and pay him $30,000 or sign a $30,000 loan agreement.  And if you want the loan you need to bring the pink slip in also.  You'd think him a little daft, wouldn't you?


Today I got an email from "Joe Biden" which read as follows:

Yesterday, President Obama announced our proposed Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee on the country's largest banks:

"My commitment is to recover every single dime the American people are owed. And my determination to achieve this goal is only heightened when I see reports of massive profits and obscene bonuses at some of the very firms who owe their continued existence to the American people...We want our money back, and we're going to get it."

The fee would recover every penny loaned to Wall Street during the financial crisis and stop the reckless abuses and excesses that nearly caused the collapse of our financial system in the first place.

My first response was, "It's a little late, don't you think?"  And my second was, "Gee, it must be great to be all powerful."  And my third response was, "Should we cut this administration some slack because the bailout was actually begun under the prior administration and these guys were still arranging the nameplates on their desks by the time the bailout was through?"

Almost as unbelievable is the response from the banking industry who, having gotten a free lunch, want to make sure it stays free.  It's not their fault there were no strings attached to the bailout money.  Real patriots, these.  But let one of their customers get a $100 due to bank error and they'll stop at nothing to get the money back.